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Finn
'Finn '''is a main character throughout ''The Books of Bayern and is the best swordsman in Bayern's Own. He is Gilsa's son and is good friends with Ani, Geric, and Razo and becomes Enna's husband at the end of Forest Born. Biography Finn lives in the Forest with his mother Gilsa. Occasionally on market days he goes to the capital city to sell the brightly-colored woolen pullovers his mother knits. The Goose Girl One day, an obviously foreign girl with blonde hair stumbles into his mother's garden and collapses. After carrying her into the house, he listens as the girl, Ani, tries to explain herself, but his mother would rather not be involved and simply wishes to send her on her way. After some thought, Ani decides to go with Finn to the capital city. Finn is a kind but quiet boy and asks no questions when Ani begs for a board to lock herself in from the inside of the shed she sleeps in, nor does he ask questions when she dresses in the Bayern fashion, hiding her exotic blonde hair under a headscarf on the morning of their departure. Even when she begins to speak in a near-perfect Bayern accent and calls herself a different name, Isi, Finn maintains his amiable silence. Once inside the city, Finn tells Ani that the king sees supplicants on marketday and shows her where to go before he displays his merchandise to potential buyers. A while later, Ani comes back and lets Finn know that she's just got a job as a goose girl to the king's geese. She asks Finn to keep her existence a secret, saying that anyone who comes to look for her is most likely not her friend. He agrees and wishes her luck before he returns to selling pullovers. Some months later during another marketweek, Finn is sent to the capital with another load of pullovers to sell. When she finds him, she admits that she's scared and in trouble. Finn gently holds her a moment to comfort her, letting her sob onto his shoulder until she pulls herself together. Finn then reports that two blonde men came to his home in the Forest looking for a yellow-haired girl, but he and his mother kept Ani's secret. He then tells her exactly how to get to his mother's house, making her repeat the way several times until she's got it memorized. Two months after the Wintermoon festival, Gilsa once again finds Ani stumbling into her garden and catches her just as the girl faints. She and Finn carry Ani into the house where they discover that she has been stabbed deeply in the back with a knife. Finn had warned his mother that some people may try to harm Ani, but she didn't quite believe him until she sees the injury with her own eyes and admits that it may be for the best if they hear the girl's story. Ani tells them everything, explaining that she's truly the princess of the neighboring country of Kildenree who has been sent to wed the prince of Bayern. On the long journey, half of her escort mutinied and killed the other half so that Ani's lady-in-waiting, Selia, could steal her identity and replace her as princess. Ani's deep injury forces her to stay in Gilsa's home and heal. One day, Gilsa's closest neighbor and friend Frigart comes to visit and Ani spots one of her very own gold rings on Frigart's finger. She had given that ring to the loyal captain of her guard, Talone, whom she thought was killed in the mutiny along with the rest of her loyal guards, and demands to know where Frigart got it. The affronted older woman says that the man she's been taking care of for months gave it to her as payment, and, filled with hope, Ani insists on going home with Frigart even though she needs Finn's help to walk. After joyfully reuniting with Talone, he visits Gilsa's house every day to help Finn with the chores and plan with Ani on how to best convince the king of Bayern that she, not Selia, is the real princess of Kildenree. As the others voice their opinions on the best course of action, Finn silently nods in agreement with everyone. Since there is safety in numbers, they ultimately decide to ask Ani's fellow animal workers for help in convincing the king. Despite the danger, Finn does not hesitate to accompany them to the city, leaving an anxious Gilsa to remind him that until he sends word, she'll be alone and in ignorance. The trio head straight for Ideca's dining hall and are surprised to find the room full. As soon as the room catches sight of Ani, Enna runs to embrace her friend as the workers congratulate her on being alive. They've all been worried sick since the night Ani escaped Ungolad; the squawking of the geese woke half the settlement just in time to see her running for her life. Enna had lead a large section of the workers in chase, but lost sight of them in the woods. Soon faced with everyone's questions, Enna felt that she had no choice but to tell everyone of Ani's true identity as Princess of Kildenree. The workers are determined to help their friend on her quest and volunteer to join her before she even has a chance to ask them. Leading her group to the palace, Ani learns that the wedding between Selia and Prince Geric is being held at Lake Meginhard. Finn is among those who volunteer to ride the way there, although he is terribly uneasy when it comes to horseback riding. At the manor, everyone except Ani is stopped by the guards, insisting that she see the king alone, forcing Ani's escort to remain outside. Nevertheless, they eventually gain access to the manor just after Selia's treachery is revealed to the king of Bayern. After a long, strenuous battle between the Kildenrean traitors and the Bayern soldiers -joined by Ani's allies- the Bayern emerge victorious. The next day, Finn is summoned to the dining hall where he is officially given a javelin and shield. As Finn takes his place among the newly formed hundred-band made up of the Forest folk, he smiles bigger than ever before. Some days after the celebration, Finn sends word to his mother about their victory and soon both are present at the marriage between Isi and Geric in the Thumbprint of the Gods, a public square that allows anyone, noble or commoner, to attend the wedding. Enna Burning Finn helps Enna with her gift of fire-speaking and along with Razo and Enna they go to Tiran camps to burn. Later, Finn is caught trying to rescue Enna from the Tiran camp and is eventually beated by Sileph. River Secrets Finn repeatedly asks Enna to marry him, to no avail. He also goes to Tira along with Enna, Razo, and Talone. Physical Description Finn has shaggy black hair and brown eyes that are speckled with gold at the edges. He is tall and broad, a good build for a swordsman. Trivia * Shannon Hale used elements of her own relationship with her husband when writing Enna and Finn's relationship. * The reason Finn is so quiet and straightforward is likely due to being raised by Gilsa. She believes in keeping to herself and sees no point in making life unduly complicated, and raised her son to think the same way. * In the Bayern Justice League, a tactic Shannon Hale used for character development, Finn is considered to be Batman. Category:People Category:Main Characters Category:Males Category:Bayern Category:Members of Bayern's Own Category:Goose Girl Characters Category:Enna Burning Characters Category:River Secrets Characters Category:Forest Born Characters